MONTREAL — Two molecules identified by Montreal researchers seem able to prevent SARS-CoV-2 from infecting lung cells, but the discovery could have far wider implications than just fighting the pandemic.
The molecules in question inhibit the action of two enzymes, Furin and TMPRSS2, which the spike protein on the surface of the coronavirus uses to bind to human cells before infecting them.
By blocking the activity of these enzymes, Professor Nabil G. Seidah and his colleagues at the Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM) have blocked live viral infection of lung cells by more than 95%.
“It’s extremely effective,” said Mr. Seidah, who shared his work first with The Canadian Press.
And SARS-CoV-2 isn’t the only virus to use Furin to infect human cells, he added.
This means that this discovery, in addition to helping to fight this interminable pandemic, could one day prove useful in the fight against other viruses that will eventually sweep the planet.
“It’s the same mechanism,” Seidah said of viruses that use Furin to enter our cells. So why not prepare in advance? We hope not, but if ever there is another pandemic or another virus or if there are mutations in a virus, well we are ready, we already have an arsenal to block that from the start, before the vaccines are not coming.”
Furin is even used by certain cancers to multiply, which means that the inhibitory molecules identified by IRCM researchers could eventually find an application in oncology.
However, it will still take a long time to identify the right therapeutic use, warned Mr. Seidah, since Furin plays an important role in the proper functioning of the body, especially during the development of the fetus and the baby. In adulthood, on the other hand, other enzymes could potentially take over if we were to block their activity.
There would also be a difference between inhibiting Furin for a few days to cure an infection and inhibiting it for several months to fight cancer, Seidah pointed out.
Professor Seidah’s team carried out this work in collaboration with that of Éric A. Cohen, also from the IRCM. The findings are published in the Journal of Virology.
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